Steel Cougar
by Lord Raa
Summary: What's the worst that could happen when Shinji's frustration gets the better of him? A divergent story using a fact from the series and extrapolating things from there.
1. Chapter 1

Steel Cougar

By Lord Raa

* * *

Disclaim-me-do: The donkey was not pleased.

* * *

Chapter 1

* * *

"¬That's awful shooting, Shinji! Don't you have any hand-eye coordination?¬"

Shinji glared at the image of his commanding officer. "If you think I'm that bad, why don't you do it instead?!"

"¬What was that, Shinji?¬"

"I said, 'if you think I'm that bad, why don't you do it instead?'" the pilot repeated, his frustration getting the better of him.

* * *

"That little..." Misato growled as she pointed a finger at the screen. "Doesn't he realise that we wouldn't put a kid in there if we didn't have to?"

"I'm sure he does, Misato," Ritsuko said, trying to reassure her friend. "Look, it's been a long day for him, made even frustrating by the fact that he can't seem to get anything right."

"But he's not even close to what we need from him. We can't just say to the next Angel 'Please hold on for a bit, our pilot's a complete rookie who managed to win his last battle by pure luck' now can we?"

Dr. Akagi reached for her coffee, quickly draining the lukewarm liquid. "How about this – we take Shinji out for quick break and put you inside."

"I can't sync with an Eva!" Misato said dismissively.

"I know that, Misato," the blonde said. "But we can get the systems to power up. Once Shinji sees that you've experienced what it's like, he'll say something like 'not so easy, is it?' After that, he should improve once he realises that he's needed here."

The Captain sighed. "I guess you're right. So, what am I going to wear? Because there's no way in hell I'm going to wear this in the entry plug."

"Give me a few minutes and I'll find you something to wear in the entry plug."

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, Misato was struggling to get into the blue and grey wetsuit her friend had handed to her.

"Why do these things have to be so damned snug?"

"It's so they can trap a layer of water to the skin to keep you warm," Ritsuko explained. She was about to pull out a cigarette. "I know it's awkward, but would you rather just walk out there in that two-piece? With all those guys out there, leering at you?"

"No," Misato replied, though her voice was oddly subdued.

'Still conscious about your scar, I see. I don't blame you though – that bikini would frame it.' Ritsuko put her tobacco away. "Here, let me help you with that."

After another minute of struggling, the Captain was finally in the wetsuit. "Damn, this is uncomfortable. Are the plugsuits this bad?"

"No, they're loose until you pressurise them," the blonde explained as she zipped her friend up. "There you go, ready for the piloting experience?"

"As ready as I'll ever be."

* * *

Shinji sat in the control room behind Dr. Akagi. His earlier enthusiasm for Misato to experience piloting was waning and he focused on the floor.

'I shouldn't have been so selfish,' he thought as he raised his head to look at the main monitor.

He was in time to see his guardian slowly climb into the entry plug, thanks to the form fitting wetsuit Ritsuko had provided.

Ritsuko cast a speculative glance behind her to see that the pilot had a blush on his face. 'Heh, Misato'll have fun teasing him tonight.'

"Right then, Pilot Katsuragi," the blonde said playfully, "are you ready?"

"¬This damn thing's chafing my butt!¬"

"I can't help that, Misato, you'll just have to suck it up for now. Now, initialising the systems."

* * *

Misato was having difficulty getting comfortable, thanks to the ill-fitting wetsuit, but was able to put it out of her mind when the system started to come online.

"Now, just take things easy, relax, take deep breaths," she told herself. "This will be over soon enough and I deal with this wedgie."

After two minutes, Misato was starting to get bored. "Ritsuko? What's going on?"

"¬Err, bear with us a moment, Misato, there's something we need to check on the instrumentation. We're going as fast as we can.¬"

The beer drinker sighed. "Fine, but if I find you've been slacking off, you're paying for tonight's drinks."

"¬Err, Dr. Akagi, what does this 29 percent thing mean?¬" Misato heard Shinji ask over the comm. system.

"29 percent? What's going on, Ritsuko?"

"¬It seems that you've somehow managed to sync with Unit-01. I can't explain it, but it doesn't look like an instrumentation fault. I'm bringing you out,¬" Ritsuko said as her hands flew across the controls.

* * *

Gendo Ikari remained silent as the two other people in his office discussed the day's unforeseen event.

"This is unexpected, Dr. Akagi," Kozo Fuyutsuki said as he looked at the printout. "Are you certain that this isn't an error?"

"I ran a diagnostic as soon as it became clear that Misato had synched with Unit-01. Hell, I ran it twice just to be sure," Ritsuko answered.

"I see," the Commander nodded. "Do either of you have any hypothesises for the cause of this synchronisation?"

Fuyutsuki shook his head. "Other than it being some sort of fluke or undetected error, I can't think of anything."

"What about you, Dr. Akagi?" Gendo asked, turning to the bottle-blonde.

"It's most likely to be some sort of instrumentation error. Which means we've got to strip everything down and test all the components," the smoker sighed.

"I see," the bearded man repeated. "We will perform the tests again after you've recalibrated the telemetry systems."

"What if it's not a computer error, Ikari?" Fuyutsuki asked. "What if Captain Katsuragi can pilot?"

"Then we have an additional pilot; one who we can expect to follow orders."

* * *

Shinji was content to make dinner for Misato, even though it was her turn that evening.

'I didn't want curry tonight,' the pilot mused as he turned off the stove. "Food's ready, Misato-san."

"Well played, Shin-chan!" the purple-haired woman smiled as she pulled out a beer from the fridge.

After the young man served up the meal, he took his seat. "So, Misato-san, what did you think of the entry plug?"

"It's weird," Misato answered as she chewed a mouthful of food. "Kinda like being in a liquid filled coffin…"

Shinji's head dropped and he focused on his plate. "That's what I thought…"

"Shit," Misato cursed under her breath. "I know it's not a pleasant experience for you, but I didn't mean to put it that way, Shinji."

"D-did Dr. Akagi say anything to you about how you synched with the Evangelion?" the pilot asked.

"Only that it might be an instrumentation error," the beer drinker replied. "I know you'd like it if you weren't the only one we could rely on, Shinji, but I don't know what else to tell you, other than 'at the moment, you're our only chance'. I'm sorry, Shinji, I really am."

* * *

The next morning, Shinji was even quieter than normal, causing Misato feel bad about what she'd said to the young man.

"Shinji," she said as he packed his bento into his bag.

"Yes, Misato-san?"

"I didn't mean to… shit, I can't even get this right…" the purple-haired woman sighed. "I'm sorry, Shinji. If there was any way I could make it easier for you, I would do. Please believe me."

Shinji nodded once. "I… I have to go to school now. I'll see you when you get back from work."

Once the pilot had left the apartment, Misato let out a loud curse. "SHIT! Why the hell can't I talk to him?"

Draining the rest of her beer, the Captain left to dress for work.

* * *

Ritsuko let out a tired sigh as she leaned back against the cold metallic floor. She closed her eyes for a moment, savouring the chance to rest after her Herculean task.

'Damn it, why did Misato have to sync with Unit-01? What made it possible? Everyone else born before the Second Impact has failed to sync with an Eva, but why her?' she asked herself.

"Sleeping on the job again, Ritsuko?"

The bottle-blonde's eyes shot open and she saw who it was that was bothering her. "Morning, Misato. I see you've opted for blue and white stripes today."

"Ha-ha-ha," Misato laughed sarcastically while holding two mugs of hot coffee. "It's a good thing we're on our own in here – any men might get the wrong idea about us. Unless you like looking up my skirt…"

Ritsuko sat up for a moment before climbing to her feet. "Misato, while I've had worse views, I can't say that I've been tempted to make out with you here at NERV."

When she took a mug of coffee from her friend, the blonde added, "Besides, you know how sordid and tacky I think sex at work is."

"Tell me about it," Misato said with a shudder. "Let's just say you don't want to use the photocopier in D wing."

"Thanks for that pleasant mental image, Misato," the scientist said with a grimace. "Lately, you seem to be causing me nothing but trouble. So, what brings you here? You're not going to spilling coffee on the computer are you?"

"Wasn't planning on that," the Captain answered truthfully. "I'm here to see how your diagnostics are going."

"Nearly done, aside from replacing this pile of processing modules," Ritsuko said before taking a much need hit of caffeine. "I should be done within the hour. After that, I'm going to get some sleep and then fin-"

Ritsuko's sentence was interrupted by a loud yawn. "Sorry about that, I pulled an all-nighter. After I get some sleep, I'll finish up the diagnostics and we can see if you can actually sync with Unit-01 or it was just a glitch."

"Cool, do you need me for anything in the meantime? You need a blood sample or anything?" Misato asked after taking a sip of coffee.

The blonde blinked, shook her head and let out an amused sigh. "Please, if you could. I can't believe I forgot to ask for that yesterday."

"It's ok, Ritsuko. I mean, I forget shit all the time," the purple haired woman smiled reassuringly.

"That's true."

* * *

That afternoon, Ritsuko was woken up from her nap by Maya Ibuki.

"Sempai, it's three o'clock," the young woman said, her head poking around the door.

"What? Already?" the scientist asked as she lifted her head off the couch in her office. She sat upright, stretched and let out a loud yawn. Rising to her feet Ritsuko slowly rolled her head in a circle. "Damn, I could do with another couple of hours sleep."

"I'm sorry, Sempai, but you wanted to be finish the diagnostics before you tested Captain Katsuragi in the entry plug again," Maya said. "I've already started the analysis on Captain Katsuragi's blood, the MAGI should have some results soon."

"Thanks, Maya," Ritsuko smiled appreciatively. "Hopefully, I can get to the bottom of this thing before the end of the day."

"Hopefully."

* * *

An hour and a half later, Misato was struggling into a wetsuit for the second time in two days.

"Stupid thing," she grumbled. "Isn't there a sleeveless one I could wear?"

"Not if you want to breathe easily, Misato," Ritsuko answered. "The sleeveless ones are a bit smaller; especially in the chest."

"My beauty is as much a curse as it is a gift," Misato grumbled good-naturedly. "There, we're ready to do this. So, we're sure that it's not a computer error?"

"I've checked every part of the system, replacing anything that looked like it might cause us a problem. So whatever results we get today will be accurate," the blonde answered.

* * *

Misato sat as calmly as she could in Unit-01's entry plug as it filled with LCL, the smell of blood filling her nostrils.

"Relax, Misato, this will be over soon enough," she told herself. "I just have to not synchronise with this thing and I can go about apologising to Shinji."

After taking in several lungfuls of LCL, the Captain was ready for this test.

"Ready when you are, Ritsuko," she said, putting on a brave face.

* * *

Ritsuko initialised the start up sequence, though it was a lot slower than she normally did things.

"The connections are all open and operating within parameters," she said to no-one in particular. "Neural input levels are stable… Attempting synchronisation now!"

"It-it's working, Sempai!" Maya Ibuki announced, three metres to the left of the bottle-blonde.

"What?" Ritsuko demanded.

"Captain Katsuragi is synchronised with Unit-01, it's holding at 28 point 98 percent," the young lieutenant explained. "I-I thought it was impossible for anyone born before the Second Impact to do this."

"I'm at a loss to answer this one," the scientist admitted. She switched on the comm. system. "Misato, try moving the arms for me."

"¬What? Move the arms? Ok.¬"

* * *

In the cockpit of Unit-01, Misato shrugged. "Other than the LCL, I can't feel anything special. Still, this should prove that yesterday was a fluke."

The purple-haired woman moved the right control stick, half expecting nothing to happen.

But when she realised that Unit-01 was actually reacting, various thoughts flashed through her mind: from surprise that something happened to how she could use this as a tactical advantage to how Shinji would react to the news.

'Shit, what about Shinji? He still feels that the only reason he's here is because we need him. If I can pilot, won't he just leave? I know I've got military training, but he's the one with the higher sync ratio...'

"Ritsuko, what's the verdict?"

"¬I can't believe it, you're synching with Unit-01. I don't know why, but you are.¬"

"Cool. Err, Ritsuko, can I get out of here and grab a shower?" Misato asked. "There's something else that I kinda need to talk to you about. I'd prefer to talk to you in private, if I could."

"¬Sure thing, Misato,¬" Ritsuko nodded as she started the shutdown procedure.

* * *

As Misato dried her long purple hair, she walked briskly to Ritsuko's office. Knocking on the door, but not waiting for an answer, she entered.

Only to be greeted by the sight of her friend sleeping at her desk.

"Ritsuko?"

"Mmm…" the blonde mumbled into her folded arms.

"Come on, Ritsuko, I need to talk to you," Misato insisted. She shook her friend by the shoulders. "Please, it's something important."

"Sleep…" Ritsuko replied, her eyes finally opening. "Misato? What's going on? I was just catching up on some sleep."

The Captain let her friend go. "I need some advice, Ritsuko. After I managed to move the Eva's arm, I realised something."

"You did?" the blonde asked as she reached for her tobacco. After lighting up and taking nicotine hit, she straightened in her chair. "Ok, so what have you realised?"

"Well, it's about Shinji. You know how he reacted to the knowledge that his dad only wanted him here to pilot Unit-01? Well, if it turns out that I can actually pilot an Eva, what's Shinji going to do?"

Ritsuko blinked as she tried to process what Misato told her. "Wait, try that again, slower this time. You know, for the benefit of those of us who pulled an all-nighter on top of double shift."

Misato nodded and repeated her concerns about Shinji.

Finishing her cigarette the scientist closed her eyes for a moment. "You've got a point, Misato. What do you want to do about this? I mean, do you want Shinji-kun to continue piloting, given that for better or worse, Unit-01 is set up for him or do you want to replace him as the pilot?"

"I don't know. I mean, I don't like the idea of a kid fighting, you know, but if it's what we need to do to survive…" the purple-haired woman said with a hint of sadness in her voice.

"Do you like Shinji-kun?" Ritsuko asked.

"What?"

"Do you like Shinji-kun?" Ritsuko repeated. "I don't mean 'do you want to get married to him next weekend', but do you care about his wellbeing?"

"Of course I do," Misato insisted. "And it's not just because I'm his guardian or superior officer. I guess, I'm kinda getting used to him being around. I like the company, even if he doesn't talk that much."

"So you want him around?" Ritsuko lit up another cigarette. "That's good – it gives us somewhere to go with this."

"Ok, but where do we go with this?"

"I've got no idea, Misato. In fact, I'm so tired, I can barely focus on you. I need sleep; you tell Shinji that you'd like to sortie with him or something. I don't know right now."

"Sorry about this, Ritsuko. I'll try talking with Shinji when I get back home."

"Good," Ritsuko nodded before falling into an exhausted slumber in her chair.

* * *

"Shinji-kun," Misato said as she poked her head around the door to her roommate's room.

The young man looked up from his homework. "Are you hungry, Misato? Do you want me to make you something to eat?"

"No," the Captain shook her head. "I… Can we talk?"

"I guess," the pilot shrugged. "What did you want to talk about, Misato-san?"

"Piloting," Misato answered. "I know you don't like thinking about Eva, but I need to talk to you about this."

Shinji didn't look too enthusiastic about the topic, but couldn't find the mental strength to protest. "Ok."

"It turns out that I did manage to synchronise with Unit-01 yesterday. We know this because Ritsuko checked the system and I synced with it again earlier today."

"I see. So you don't need me any more, do you?"

"That's not true – just because I managed to sync with Unit-01, it doesn't mean I can pilot it in combat," the purple haired woman replied. She took his left hand in hers. "What it means, Shinji-kun, is that you won't have to face the Angels alone anymore."

Shinji turned his gaze to the floor. "I guess…"

'Shit, why can't I do this right? I tell him that I'll be helping him, but he's still upset about something.' Misato sighed. "Shinji, something's bothering you. Tell me what it is."

The young Ikari lifted his head. "You said that you're going to pilot, but you still don't know what it's like."

'Neither did you until recently,' the Captain thought.

"When that first Angel picked me up off the floor and started hitting me in the face, it felt like my head was going to be split open and my brain was going to fall out," Shinji continued.

'Is Shinji worried about me?' Misato blinked. "True, but how do you think I'd feel if I didn't do what I could to help you out? Don't worry about that, Shinji. If I have anything to say about this, we'll be fine."

"I guess so…"

* * *

The next morning at NERV, Misato knocked on Ritsuko's office door.

"What is it?"

"Hi Ritsuko, I was wondering if you were doing anything for tonight?"

Ritsuko looked up from her analysis of Misato's synchronisations. "Tonight? I don't know yet, I still need to talk with the Commander about yesterday."

"Ok," Misato nodded. "It's just that-"

"Just that you can't seem to say the right thing to Shinji?" the blonde interrupted. "I can't promise anything, but if I can come up with some way to help you, I'll let you know."

"Thanks, Ritsuko."

* * *

In the NERV Commander's office, Kozo Fuyutsuki looked over the preliminary report that Ritsuko had complied.

"How can Captain Katsuragi synchronise with Unit-01?" he asked. "It doesn't make any sense."

"I don't know," the blonde scientist replied. "I've checked out everything that could possibly give us a false positive, so we know it's not a computer error."

Gendo Ikari closed his eyes as he focused his sharp mind on finding a reason for this anomaly. 'What do we know about Captain Katsuragi? She's an alcoholic; she's living with the Third Child; she was on the Katsuragi Expedition with her father...'

"I have a possible explanation."

"You do?" the grey-haired man asked. "What is it?"

Ritsuko also looked at the bearded man for an answer.

"What is Captain Katsuragi's most noteworthy fact?" Gendo asked. Not waiting for an answer, he continued his hypothesis. "The only reason for her to even so much as synchronise with Unit-01, outside gross incompetence on the part of NERV technical staff, is because she's a surviving witness to the Second Impact. The only surviving witness."

Ritsuko bristled at the thinly veiled slur, but managed to bite her tongue long enough for the Commander's point to sink in.

"I… I hadn't considered that."

The Commander smirked, but decided against mocking the blonde.

"How should we proceed?" Fuyutsuki asked.

"Captain Katsuragi is to be considered a backup pilot; we will review the situation once Rei has recovered sufficiently to pilot Unit-00," Gendo replied. "Have a plugsuit made for Katsuragi. That way we can use her as a PR distraction and keep certain facts hidden for longer. The repairs for Unit-01 are the top priority, but don't allow the work on Unit-00 to lag behind."

"Yes Sir," the scientist nodded before leaving to draw up a plan for Misato's testing and training.

"Are you sure this is the wisest course of action, Ikari?" Fuyutsuki asked. "What if Shinji reacts badly to this? He only piloted because he didn't want Rei to be hurt any further."

"It is a deviation from the plan, but not using Captain Katsuragi like this would be waste of an unexpected boon. We will handle the Third Child according to his reaction."

* * *

That afternoon, Ritsuko called Misato to her office. "Misato, I want to talk to you and Shinji about piloting and the changes to your respective roles, so is tonight a good time to come over?"

"Actually," the Captain said looking a little relieved, "I wanted you to come over to help me talk to Shinji. I still haven't figured out what to say to him."

"Oh?" the blonde asked as she reached for her cigarettes. "Is he taking the news that you can pilot that badly?"

"I don't know what he's thinking," Misato admitted. "All I know is that he's conflicted about it."

Ritsuko exhaled a plume of smoke. "It sounds like it's going to be a long night for me. If I have to stop over to fix your problem, then I want breakfast thrown in."

When the purple-haired woman cast a questioning look at her, the scientist replied.

"Hey, I've had to put in a lot of work lately and missed several meals because of you, Misato. The least you could do is make sure I'm fed."

"Sure thing, Ritsuko."

* * *

To be continued…

Pre-read by Chi Vayne and previewed on various intertubes.

There may be more before the heat death of the universe. But I promise nothing.

Stalk me on on Twitter for random updates and retweets from funnier people. I'm LordRaa


	2. Chapter 2

Steel Cougar

By Lord Raa

* * *

Disclaim-me-do: Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your Captain speaking. We have a small problem. All four engines have stopped. We are doing our damnedest to get them going again. I trust you are not in too much distress.

* * *

Chapter 2

* * *

Ritsuko shuddered as the curry Misato had made was slowly forced down her gullet. As soon as she could, she reached for her beer and washed away the offending aftertaste.

"Damn, Misato, that's the worst tasting thing I've ever put in my mouth!"

"No-one forced you to eat it," Misato shrugged.

"True," the scientist conceded. "But since YOU asked me to come over for dinner, I thought there'd be edible food. This is so bad that I'm at a loss to describe it, Misato."

"Then stop talking about it," the beer drinker muttered angrily. She looked away and saw that Shinji also wasn't terribly impressed with her cooking. "You hate it too, Shin-chan?"

"It, it's not good, Misato-san," the teenager replied. He took another glance at the brown semi-solid mass on his plate. "I'm sorry, Misato-san, I can't eat this. I'll make myself something to eat. Would you like something, Dr. Akagi?"

"Yes please, Shinji-kun," the bottle-blonde smiled. "I'm sure that whatever you make will be fine."

The pilot left for the kitchen, taking the unfinished plates of curry with him. A couple of minutes later, when they were sure that they were alone, Ritsuko turned to her friend. "He doesn't seem as bad as you made out earlier."

"Well, yeah, he's cheered up a bit since this morning, but you know what these kids are like." Misato finished her can of beer. "I suppose that it's because we've not mentioned piloting."

The blonde's response was cut off by Shinji returning with two plates of omelettes.

"I know it's not much, Dr. Akagi," the pilot said apologetically as he handed her a plate.

"It certainly smells wonderful, Shinji-kun."

Misato looked on enviously. 'I should've had Shinji cook for us. I'll have to remember that for next time Ritsuko comes over.'

"So, Shinji-kun, what do you think to the idea of me being a pilot?" the Captain asked.

"I… I don't know," the teenager half-heartedly replied.

Ritsuko shot a look at Misato, who could only shrug before asking a follow up question.

"Are you worried about not being wanted or needed if I start piloting?"

"I… I don't know," Shinji said, pushing his food around his plate.

The two women shared another look as another possibility entered their heads at the same time.

"Shinji-kun," Ritsuko said, placing her fork on her now empty plate. "Are you worried that Misato might get hurt if she pilots?"

"A little," the young Ikari admitted with a light blush on his cheeks.

"I want you to be honest with us." the blonde followed up. "Do you like Misato? It's ok if you do; it's ok if you don't."

"L-like her how?" Shinji asked, his complexion reddening.

"Oh, you know, you're a boy, I'm a girl and we live under the same roof…" Misato teased.

"You're not helping, Misato," Ritsuko said through gritted teeth. "But that is what I meant, Shinji-kun. Are you attracted to Misato and worried that she'll get hurt if she pilots?"

The soft-spoken youth nodded. "Yes."

"She can look after herself, Shinji-kun," the scientist smiled. When Shinji looked unconvinced, she added a qualifier. "Well, not domestically, but she certainly can in combat."

"If you say so…"

A thought occurred to Misato. 'I know how to prove it to him…'

In the blink of an eye, Shinji found himself on his back, looking up into his guardian's eyes.

"See, Shin-chan, I'm not too bad in a fight," the Captain smirked as she saw the teenager try to figure out what had happened and why he was on his back.

Deciding that her friend needed to be chastised for her horseplay, Ritsuko casually commented on plugsuits. "Don't forget that as her fellow pilot, you'll see her in her plugsuit. And I think you know what you wear underneath them…"

"What?" Misato demanded, her head snapping to the blonde's direction. "What did you say?"

"As a pilot, you'll be wearing a plugsuit quite often. And you don't wear underwear under them. You may recall that there isn't a visible panty line."

"Y-you mean Misato-san will…"

"Yes, Shinji-kun," Ritsuko nodded. "Misato will be wearing nothing but a rather tight-fitting vinyl outfit when she sorties with you."

After Shinji processed that comment, his nose started to bleed.

"And I thought you didn't like it when Shin-chan was teased like that, Ritsuko," Misato mock chided. She rolled back onto her heels, hoping to spring back up to her feet, but misjudged the distance. "Oh shit!"

Shinji lifted his head to see the purple-haired woman lying on her back with her legs splayed obscenely and her tank-top revealing her bra and a nasty-looking scar.

"M-misato-san, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, Shin-chan," the beer-drinker said. "Just didn't plan on falling on my ass like that."

"Serves you right for wrestling Shinji-kun to the floor like that," Ritsuko said unsympathetically, though there was a clear hint of humour in her voice.

"Yeah, you're right, Ritsuko," Misato said as she climbed to her feet and helped her roommate up. "I should save the wrestling with Shinji for the bedroom."

"M-Misato-san!" the teenager spluttered, his face red with embarrassment.

* * *

Later that evening, Ritsuko noted that Shinji was casting furtive glances at Misato. When the purple haired woman left to use the toilet, Ritsuko turned to the young man to her right.

"Shinji-kun, is there something you wanted to know?"

"I… I was wondering about the scar on Misato-san," the pilot replied.

"The one on her chest?" the scientist asked.

Shinji nodded. "Do you know how she got it?"

"It's not my place to tell you all of Misato's secrets, Shinji-kun," Ritsuko replied, hoping to avoid the issue.

"No it's not," Misato, fresh from her comfort break, confirmed as she retook her seat. "So, what was it you wanted to know about me, Shin-chan?"

"I… I didn't want to pry."

"Too late, the cat's out of the bag," the Captain replied. "What did you want to know?"

When Shinji failed to answer, Misato felt she had a good idea of what his question was about. "But Shin-chan, don't you think it's a bit sudden for you to ask for my hand in marriage? I know that we get on pretty well, especially after you agreed to take care of so many of the chores, but it's not even been six weeks since we met. Still, it's better than some people's marriages…"

"T-that's not what I meant!" the pilot protested, his face red. "I was talking about your chest…"

The beer drinker felt somewhat amused by the way Shinji's hands flew to his mouth, as if they could prevent the opening from embarrassing him further.

"If you're talking about my scar, I got that during the Second Impact," Misato said in a serious tone. Her eyes were drawn to the beads of condensation slowly sliding down her beer can onto the tabletop.

"But if you're talking about my breasts, then they're real," she added with a teasing glint in her eye.

Ritsuko sat silent as she watched the change in her friend's demeanour. 'I'm not surprised she changed the subject so quickly.'

"Misato, have you finished making Shinji-kun think about your breasts?"

"For the time being, yes," Misato said, turning her attention back towards Ritsuko. "So what's next? Am I going to be helping with the tests for Unit-01?"

"As well as Unit-00," the bottle-blonde nodded. "We need to see if your ability to sync is specific to Unit-01 or if you'll be able to pilot other Evangelions."

"Cool," the beer drinker said. She let out a yawn. "Well, it's getting late and I need sleep. You staying the night or what, Ritsuko?"

It was Ritsuko's turn to yawn. "If it's not too much hassle, I'll crash on the couch, if it's alright with you."

"No problem, just try not to molest Shinji," Misato teased as she finished her beer off.

"I like to I think I'm able to control my baser urges, Misato," the scientist said dryly. "And unlike some people I don't feel the need to wrestle young men to the floor."

Misato was unfazed by the comment. "Don't knock it 'til you've tried it – it's more fun than you might think."

* * *

That night, Shinji was not able to get to sleep. His thoughts were filled by his guardian. While he had spent a lot of time thinking about her body, especially given his age and the picture she had sent him, this time it wasn't sexual.

It was about the scar on her chest.

At least, that's how it had started since he couldn't shut out the comments about her breasts being real and how she thought that wrestling him to the floor was fun.

'She was just teasing me. She's not interested in me like that,' the pilot kept telling himself.

But the more he repeated that line of thinking, the more his mind's eye focused on Misato's body. And the more he thought about Misato's body, the more his own reacted.

Rolling onto his left side, Shinji tried to get comfortable. When he moved his legs, he realised what was causing a problem.

'I can't deal with this right now,' he thought glumly. 'If it was just Misato-san in her room, I could get away with being quick, but I might wake up Dr. Akagi…'

The pilot continued to shift in his bed, attempting to get comfortable enough to sleep. 'I can't sleep – I need to do something.'

Shinji lifted his covers off him and swung his feet over the end of his bed. Taking several moments, he hoped the cool air would calm his raging erection to the point where he wouldn't have to masturbate. He was startled by the knock on his door.

"Shinji, can I talk to you?"

"M-Misato-san? I… err…"

"Yeah, look, Shinji, I know it's late, but I wanted to talk to you," the Captain said through the door. Misato decided to finally speak her mind with Shinji and opened the door to see Shinji panic as he fumbled for his covers. "I suppose that would explain why you weren't exactly coherent."

"It's not what you think, Misato-san," the pilot insisted. "I was just about to go to the toilet."

"That's not important right now, Shinji," the purple-haired woman said reassuringly. "I know you don't like thinking about it, but I want to talk to you about piloting."

"But what about me – if you can pilot the Eva, what's going to happen to me?" Shinji asked. "Is my father going to send me away again? Am I only here to be used as a spare?"

"No, Shinji," Misato said, moving to sit next to the teenager. "If anything, I'm the spare. The Commander wants to see if I can sync with Unit-00 as well as Unit-01."

"Oh."

"I know you think you're alone, but you're not. I can't promise anything, but if you need someone to talk to, I'll try and make the time for you, ok?"

"Thank you, Misato-san," Shinji smiled.

"Good, now, do you need some private time or what?" the Captain teased.

"Misato-san!"

"Don't worry, Shinji, I'm only teasing you. Good night, I'll see you tomorrow morning, ok?"

The Captain left the pilot looking flustered and made her way to her own room. As Misato lay down on her bed, she let out a sigh. She was tired, but at least things seemed to be going better with Shinji now.

She pulled the cover over her, smiling slightly as she recalled the embarrassment on the pilot's face.

"Heh, still got it," she murmured happily.

* * *

Morning came and Ritsuko saw that Shinji was up and about, preparing breakfast.

"Good morning, Dr. Akagi."

"Oh, good morning, Shinji-kun," she replied. "I'm not sure I expected you to be up and about."

"I got used to getting up early," the pilot explained. "Besides, if we wait for Misato-san to get up, we'll miss breakfast."

"Yeah, she's not a morning person," Ritsuko smiled. She added, "I used to be Misato's roommate back in college."

"Oh, I see," Shinji nodded in understanding. "Would you like tea or coffee?"

"Coffee please, Shinji-kun." The scientist stretched before making her way to the bathroom.

Five minutes later, she emerged to see Shinji plating up some scrambled eggs on toast.

"Sorry it's not much, Dr. Akagi, but we don't have much food in the house. I'm not used to cooking the instant food Misato-san buys."

"I'm sure it'll be fine, Shinji-kun."

Misato stumbled from her room and straight into the bathroom. Two minutes later, she stumbled out, drying her hands on a towel.

"Good morning, Misato, you look like you're ready to take on the world," Ritsuko smiled sarcastically.

The purple-haired woman just grunted before opening the fridge and retrieving her first beer of the day. After swilling down the majority of the amber liquid, Misato perked up visibly.

"Ah, that's much better."

Ritsuko shook her head. "You haven't changed since college, Misato."

"Sorry for still being fun, Ritsuko," Misato replied, playfully sticking her tongue out at her former roommate. "Now, let's eat breakfast before it gets cold."

"So what's the plan for today, Dr. Akagi?" Shinji asked, refilling the scientist's cup.

"More testing is the short answer, Shinji-kun. Testing of Misato, the control systems and of you," the bottle blonde answered.

"Me? What do you need me for?"

"Well, I need you as a control for this testing. We know you can synchronise with Unit-01 and that will be my control for checking the variables. Variables will be things like the LCL pressure and its temperature. Then when I've got the data, Misato will go in and we'll test again."

There was a beeping and Ritsuko checked her phone. "Oh, it seems that Misato's plugsuit is ready."

"What?" the roommates asked in unison.

"When I told the Commander about Misato's synchronisation with Unit-01, he ordered that a plugsuit be made for her."

"Oh, right," Misato said, unsure of how she felt about this. While she was well aware of her looks, having used them to her advantage for many years, how would everyone react if they saw her in a plugsuit? "Wait a minute, how do you know what size to make it in?"

"We've got your height from your medical records," the scientist answered. "As for the other measurements, your suit will fit your contours. More or less, anyway."

* * *

Shinji's testing had gone through without any major problems aside from the dizziness he felt when they had increased the LCL pressure above 1.12 bar.

Doctor Akagi had mentioned that it was lower than the MAGI had predicted, but it wasn't something that would cause too many problems.

He climbed out of the entry plug and stretched. Looking around, he waited for Misato to get to the entry plug.

The thought of Misato in the plugsuit was rather enticing – she did have a fine figure, add in the fact that she wouldn't be wearing any underwear and there would be male pulses racing wherever she went.

Shinji was just glad that Touji and Kensuke didn't know about today's testing. The pair would have hounded him for a photograph.

The sound of footsteps approaching made him turn his head to the metal stairway. He saw the top of Misato's head approaching him.

Two steps later, the teenager saw that Misato was wearing a dark expression.

"M-Misato-san?"

It was clear that the Captain had been upset with the journey from the locker rooms to the entry plug.

"Stupid chafing plugsuit," Misato grumbled. She glanced up at Shinji with an increased understanding of why Shinji didn't particularly like piloting.

Shinji saw that Misato was wearing a labcoat over her plugsuit.

"Is everything all right, Misato-san?"

"This thing doesn't fit right, but at least it's better than the wetsuit," the purple-haired woman answered. She let out a sigh as she finished climbing the stairs. "That would've been easier in my uniform.

"Well, I suppose that it's time for you to see why it was hard work to walk up the stairs."

Misato slipped the white labcoat off her shoulders, revealing a black vinyl material with red highlights. Slowly, she revealed more of the plugsuit, the synthetic material clinging to her body.

It was then that Shinji noticed that the red coloured material wasn't limited to highlights or flashes. The designers had, for some reason, decided that part of the suit that contained Misato's impressive chest should be in red.

It was obvious to the Captain that the contrast had immediately drawn his attention to her breasts.

After a few lingering moments, Misato smirked before finally allowing the labcoat to drop to the floor.

The designers had again used the two different colours of material to highlight another part of Misato's figure. From the back it looked like she was wearing a pair of skimpy, tight-fitting bikini bottoms.

As a bit of fun, Misato bent over to pick up the labcoat.

Shinji whimpered as the sight before him was burned into his brain.

"Hold this for me, will you Shin-chan?" Misato asked with a wink as she handed over the white garment.

Dumbstruck, Shinji watched his flirty guardian climb into the entry plug before blowing him a kiss.

"See you in a bit, Shin-chan," the purple-haired woman said as the hatch closed.

* * *

Back in the control room, Ritsuko was shaking her head in disbelief at the way Misato had shamelessly flirted with Shinji. It was in stark contrast to the way she'd demanded a labcoat to cover the plugsuit as she walked to the entry plug.

That had been understandably modest, given that the material accentuated Misato's buttocks and drawn attention to her breasts.

The scientist switched on the radio. "So, Misato, can we start our tests or do you want to keep flirting with Shinji?"

"¬I'm done for now, Ritsuko,¬" the Captain replied, rolling her eyes at the disapproving tone her friend was using. "¬Besides, it's not my fault.¬"

"It's not your fault that you were acting like that?" Ritsuko asked disbelievingly. "Then whose fault is it?"

"¬Well, maybe I am a little to blame, but when you put someone as sexy as me in something that looks like it should be worn by an AV star, you have to expect some sexy behaviour.¬"

Ritsuko shook her head and reached for her cigarettes and lighter. "Moving swiftly along, are you ready to begin, Captain Katsuragi?"

"¬Yes I am, Doctor Akagi,¬" Misato answered formally, though her tone was even more mocking than Ritsuko's.

* * *

Two and a half hours later, Misato emerged from the entry plug mentally and physically exhausted.

"Urgh," she groaned. Looking up, she was surprised to see a cold drink waiting for her. "Shinji?"

"Y-yes, Misato-san."

"Thanks," the purple-haired woman smiled before accepting the drink. The vaguely fruit-flavoured sports drink was refreshing, and soon the 'scientifically designed' formula of sugars and electrolytes would allow her to fully articulate her opinion on piloting an Evangelion.

"That was hard work."

"Yeah, it's not as easy as it looks, is it?" Shinji muttered rhetorically, though his tone was somewhat more sarcastic than he'd planned. He blushed when he realised that Misato had heard him. "Sorry, I …"

"What?"

"I only wanted you to see what it was like to pilot an Eva; to see that it wasn't as easy as some people think."

"What? People think it's easy? Who does?" the Captain asked before finishing her drink.

"Well, it's mainly Kensuke who thinks that it's easy. That the computers do most of the work and all I have to do is point it in the right direction…"

"Is he the one with the glasses who drools over me?"

"Yes, that's Kensuke Aida," Shinji nodded.

"And the taller one is?"

"Touji. Touji Suzuhara," the teenaged pilot answered. "He also asks me questions about what it's like to live with you. Sometimes, the two of them team up on me and it's hard to escape."

Misato's eyes narrowed. "What sort of thing are they asking?"

"Well, err, it's, I mean they keep asking me embarrassing questions," Shinji blushed heavily. "Really private things… I haven't told them anything, honest, Misato-san!"

"I believe you, Shinji. Thank you for being so discrete. Now, how about you let me get to the showers?" Misato asked.

"Of course, Misato-san."

* * *

To be continued…

Pre-read by Chi Vayne and previewed on various intertubes.

Feel free to stalk me on Twitter LordRaa. You may find dull updates and retweets from people much funnier than I am.


	3. Chapter 3

Steel Cougar

By Lord Raa

* * *

Disclaim-me-do: The most devastating tennis shot in the galaxy is the return of the Jedi.

* * *

Chapter 3

* * *

Ritsuko looked over the data that had been captured during the day's testing. Varying the temperature and pressure of the LCL had made some difference in the synchronisation rates of Misato and Shinji. Although Shinji's sync ratios were better than Misato's, Misato was able to maintain her performance over a wider range of temperatures and pressures.

Not that the testing seemed to show any reason for Misato's ability to synchronise with Unit-01.

The faux-blonde leaned back in her chair and let out a tired sigh. "Why did this have to happen? Would it have been too much to ask for something to go to plan for once?"

She rubbed the bridge of her nose for a good minute before turning her attention to her coffee cup. 'New plan: put this on the back burner for now and focus on Unit-00 for a bit. But first things first, time for some fresh coffee.'

* * *

Makoto Hyuga was taking a much needed break. He and Shigeru Aoba had been working on the repairs for Unit-01.

He looked up to see Dr. Ritsuko Akagi approaching.

"Good afternoon, Dr. Akagi," he smiled politely.

"Good afternoon Lt. Hyuga," the bottle blonde replied. She let out a yawn. "Oh, sorry, I've been working on flat out for the past couple of days."

"Is it anything I can help you with?"

Ritsuko paused as she considered the potential repercussions of revealing the truth about her latest findings. "Err, no, not at the moment, Lt. Hyuga. I appreciate the offer, but at the moment, it's little more than theory and simulations."

It was then that Shigeru Aoba entered the break room. He was a little breathless from rushing around, but was able to ask his question, "Hyuga, did you hear the news?"

"What news would this be?" the bespectacled man asked.

"It's about Captain Katsuragi!"

"What about her?"

"Someone said that she was in a plugsuit!" the long haired man declared.

Hyuga was taken aback. Captain Misato Katsuragi was considered the most beautiful woman in Tokyo-3. Her body made the men drool and most of the women envious when she was in uniform. Factor in the form fitting nature of the Evangelion plugsuit and it was almost enough to cause unbidden, but most pleasant, mental images and stirrings.

"C-captain Katsuragi in a plugsuit? W-what colour was it?"

"It doesn't matter," Ritsuko said, hoping to nip this adolescent behaviour in the bud. "The tests are completed now and Captain Katsuragi is back in uniform."

"W-what?" the two men asked in unison.

"I've said too much already," the scientist said with a tone of finality. "When the time is right, you'll be told more and not before. Now, if you'll permit me to get some coffee, I can finish up my reports for the Commander and he can decide what to do with the data I've collected."

* * *

In her office, Ritsuko called up the Commander.

"¬What is it, Doctor Akagi?¬" Gendo Ikari asked, his tone was even, but hinted that he was being interrupted.

The bottle blonde paused for a moment before continuing. "Some of the support staff have been asking about why Captain Katsuragi was in a plugsuit. I've tried to stop things from getting out of hand, but I want to know how you want to continue with this."

The Commander remained silent for a moment. "¬There will be questions and I want to be able to answer them. We need more data before we can properly brief the UN. Get Unit-00 ready for synchronisation testing with Captain Katsuragi. That is your new priority.¬"

"Yes, sir," Ritsuko answered before the Commander ended the call from his end. "As polite as ever, I see."

Shaking her head, the scientist saved the document that she was working on before phoning Aoba and Hyuga.

Five minutes later, the two men knocked on her door.

"Come in."

"You wanted to see us, Dr. Akagi?" Hyuga asked.

"Yes. I have spoken with Commander Ikari and he's given me a new priority: Unit-00. It needs to be made ready for synchronisation testing as soon as possible," the faux-blonde explained. "There is a reason for this, and it can be summed up in four words: we need more data."

"Does this have anything to do with Captain Katsuragi?" Aoba asked with more than a hint of hope in his voice.

"What I'm about to tell you is not to be repeated outside of official briefings, is that clear?"

"Yes, ma'am," the two men replied in unison.

"Good," Ritsuko nodded. "During a recent training session, it was discovered that Captain Katsuragi was able to synchronise with Unit-01. The ratio was 29 percent. Because there was a chance that this was an instrumentation error, everything was replaced and the tests repeated. The result was a sync ratio of approximately 29 percent.

"Earlier, there was further synchronisation testing. Pilot Ikari was used as a baseline for this test. Captain Katsuragi was wearing a plugsuit for this testing."

Ritsuko reached over and took a sip of her coffee before continuing. "Now, since we have confirmed that Captain Katsuragi's synchronisation with Unit-01 was neither a fluke nor instrumentation error, we need to see if she can sync with Unit-00."

The two men nodded in understanding.

The scientist saw that she needed to dangle a carrot rather than just wield a stick. "Of course, the sooner that Unit-00 is ready for this testing, the sooner we can start. And it goes without saying that I will need someone to monitor this important test.

"You have your orders. You are dismissed."

"Yes, ma'am," the two men saluted before rushing off to attend to their duties.

Ritsuko shook her head and turned her attention back to the results of the day's testing.

* * *

Elsewhere at NERV, Shinji and Misato were discussing their experiences in the entry plugs.

"So, Shinji-kun, how did today's testing compare with an actual mission?" the Captain asked, looking at her ward intently.

"Well, it wasn't as rough. I mean, it didn't feel like I was going to lose an arm or have my skull cracked open," the young Ikari answered. "Sometimes, when the Evangelion is hit and thrown about, it can make you feel a bit dizzy, like when they increased the pressure of the LCL."

"I'm not that hot on physics, but I think increasing the pressure is the only way we can simulate impacts short of hitting the entry plugs with big hammers."

Shinji smirked at the image of technicians hitting the entry plug with large hammers.

Misato noticed the expression on Shinji's face and added, "Entry plug no baka."

That was enough to cause the young man to laugh out loud, drawing the attention of Maya Ibuki.

The young lieutenant approached the pilots.

"Is everything alright?"

"Everything's fine, Ibuki-san," Shinji answered. He seemed to become a little more withdrawn at Maya's presence.

Misato picked up on the change in body language in her roommate. "Can we help you with anything, Maya?"

"Oh no, nothing's wrong, Captain Katsuragi, it's just that I don't think I've ever heard Ikari-kun laugh before," the short-haired woman answered.

The Captain shrugged. "I guess that's just because you only see Shinji here at NERV. At home, he's a lot more fun."

"I should get back to work," Maya smiled before bowing politely and leaving them alone.

When they were alone, Misato turned to Shinji. "In all seriousness, Shinji, is everything alright? I saw you tense up when Maya came up to us."

"I'm just not used to people coming up to me and talking to me," the teenager answered.

"So what makes me different?"

"I don't know," Shinji shrugged nervously.

The purple-haired woman leaned in to whisper into his ear. "Maybe it's because you don't want to give up the chance to see me in a towel when I get out of the bath?"

"It's not that," the young pilot insister, his cheeks turning bright red.

"Or maybe it's the wrestling?"

"M-Misato-san…"

"And there's our answer," Misato smiled knowingly. "Anyway, it's time for us to go back to work, Shinji. We'll go see Ritsuko in her office and see what she has to say about our sync scores."

* * *

Ritsuko had completed her preliminary analysis of the day's test data when Misato knocked on her office door.

"Come in."

"Good afternoon, Ritsuko," Misato beamed, bringing Shinji inside with her. "So, what do you have to say about our sync scores?"

"Must do better if you hope to come back from a mission unharmed," the bottle blonde answered coolly, not looking up from her computer screen. After a moment, she turned her attention to her visitors. "That said, you've had the best results we've seen for someone who wasn't a pilot candidate."

"Is that it? I was forced to dress like I was going to some kind of fetish club and that's all you have to say?" Misato growled.

"You seemed to enjoy teasing Shinji when you were dressed in the plugsuit," Ritsuko countered.

"Well, that's different," the purple-haired woman insisted, suddenly feeling a little self-conscious.

"In what way?" the scientist asked, genuinely intrigued as to the differences that Misato saw between the situations.

"…" Shinji blushed brightly at the topic of conversation.

"Well… I… Look, it's just different," Misato said, glaring at her friend.

Ritsuko nodded. "Shinji, please could you bring us all some coffee?"

"Yes, Dr. Akagi," the pilot nodded before leaving the room.

"He's not here, so in what way is it different for you to wear the plugsuit in front of Shinji?"

"Shinji's different, ok? It's not like he's just a roommate or someone who cooks and cleans for me," Misato said somewhat evasively.

Ritsuko nodded, but then the follow up words of, "I kinda like him…" sank in. "What?"

"I… I kinda like Shinji. Something's changed since I went in the entry plug. I swear, a week ago, it was different – he was just Shinji then."

The sense of outrage at Misato's admission was quickly superseded by the mystery of what could cause such a change in Misato.

Yes, Misato was flirty and enjoyed saying provocative things in order to amuse herself and had been that way ever since Ritsuko had first met her, but this, confession for lack of a better term, was different.

"Have you felt any different since you first went into the entry plug?"

"Aside from having to wear things that don't fit right, I don't really feel any different."

"Be honest with me, Misato," Ritsuko said solemnly. "I need to know if the there's going to be a complication."

"Alright, but if you tell anyone about this, I will kill you, OK?" Misato warned.

"Unless it becomes a problem that means you or Shinji can't pilot, as far as I'm concerned I didn't hear a thing."

The Captain locked the door before taking a deep breath. "I've been feeling a bit more… how can I put this?"

"Misato, one, I'm a scientist – it's my job to understand complicated things and how and why they happen. Two, we're friends and we used to be roommates. Short of you suddenly sprouting new body parts, I'm not going to be that shocked by what you tell me."

"You know how teenage boys are always thinking about sex? Well, it's kinda like that. It's not like I'm about to jump on the next man I see, but it's been a while."

"That was not quite what I was expecting. This could be hormonal, your first blood sample didn't show anything out of the ordinary," Ritsuko reasoned.

"What if it is hormonal?" Misato asked. "Am I going to need to take the pill or something? And why didn't it happen after the first time I got in the entry plug?"

"We'll take another sample and analyse it. Top priority," the faux-blonde decided. "As for why now; well, you've had more contact with LCL, so it's possible that it's a build up that's causing the reaction."

The door handle moved.

"Hello? It's Shinji, I've got your coffee, but the door's locked."

"Hang on, Shinji," Ritsuko called out. "We'll take our coffee to go. We need to take a blood sample from Misato."

"Oh, ok." Shinji stepped away from the door and waited for the two women to come out of the office.

"Is everything alright?" he asked when they emerged.

"Yes, we just need to check a few things," Ritsuko answered. "We wouldn't want to miss anything that could cause a problem in the future."

* * *

Ritsuko had just handed over Misato's latest blood sample to the lab technician when her mobile phone rang.

"Akagi speaking."

"¬Dr. Akagi, it's Hyuga here. We've got Unit-00 ready for the synchronisation testing.¬"

"Convenient how you managed to complete all the work so soon," Ritsuko commented.

"¬Well, it seems that people really like the idea of surviving Angel attacks, Dr. Akagi.¬"

"Alright, I suppose that we can fit in another test today if we're quick. Oh, and Hyuga, do remember that this testing is classified. If I see hordes of people standing around trying to get a look at the test, I will have you disciplined."

"¬O-of course, Dr. Akagi,¬" the Lieutenant said, suddenly feeling rather nervous about things.

The bottle blonde hung up and turned to face Misato. "Good news and bad; the good is that Unit-00 is ready for testing, the bad is that this testing if a high priority."

"So I need to get back into a plugsuit," Misato sighed. "Still, I suppose we can get Shinji to attempt to synchronise with Unit-00 while we're at it."

"What? Me?" Shinji asked, unsure of why he was being dragged into things. "Why?"

"More data," Ritsuko smiled. "Don't worry, Shinji, we won't be doing any more extensive testing today; just a basic synchronisation initialisation."

"Ok."

* * *

Makoto Hyuga and Shigeru Aoba were standing around, trying not to look like they were burning off nervous energy.

"I can't believe we're going to see Katsuragi-san in a plugsuit!"

"I know! This is going to be so awesome!"

Maya Ibuki looked at her co-workers and shook her head in disgust. 'Pigs,' she thought disapprovingly.

"Right then," Ritsuko Akagi said as she walked into the control room. "Hyuga, lock the doors, Aoba, prepare to start logging everything. Ibuki, signal Shinji to let him know we're about to begin."

"But…"Aoba trailed off under the stern look from the bottle blonde. "Preparing the logger now."

"Ikari-kun, we're ready for you to begin."

"¬Ok,¬" the teenager answered. Moments later, the hatch closed and the entry plug started to fill with LCL.

* * *

15 minutes later, Shinji climbed out of the entry plug feeling a bit disappointed in his synchronisation score. 31.43 percent was considerably lower than what he achieved the first time he climbed into Unit-01.

However, it was, as Dr. Akagi pointed out, still higher than anything Misato had achieved in Unit-01.

He turned around to see Misato standing there, a white labcoat covering her black and red plugsuit.

"Are you ready, Misato-san?"

"Too bad if I'm not," the purple-haired woman winked playfully. She slipped out of the labcoat and handed it to Shinji. "Be right back."

The teenager stood dumbstruck as he watched his roommate's vinyl-clad body sway as she climbed the steps into the entry plug. As she bent over, Shinji failed to notice that he was biting his bottom lip.

Misato looked over at her ward. "Try not to hurt yourself, Shin-chan."

* * *

On a normal test, the support staff would have laughed at the way Misato was teasing Shinji.

Of course, on a normal day, Misato wouldn't be climbing into an entry plug.

The three lieutenants were all glued to their screens, with the two men silently vowing to never forget the day they saw Misato Katsuragi bending over in plugsuit.

Ritsuko saw that numerous stills from the video were being taken for later analysis. She could certainly understand why, but knew that she had to put her foot down to stop this.

"Remember how I said that this test is classified? Well, if one frame of that video shows up outside of this room without my approval, there will be reprisals. Pay will be docked, formal reprimands placed in work records, and I'll tell Misato that it was you.

"I dread to think what sort of thing she will do to you when she gets her hands on you."

"Katsuragi-sama can do as she pleases with me…" Hyuga said with a faraway look in his eyes.

"Thank you Mistress Katsuragi, may I have another?" Aoba murmured.

"¬Ready when you guys are,¬" Misato said into the comm. link.

"Just warning these guys about what'll happen if they leak any details about this test," Ritsuko said.

"¬They better not,¬" Misato glared into the camera. "¬Or I'll kick their asses so hard, they'll need to have their stomachs pumped to get my shoes removed.¬"

"So worth it if she's wearing that plugsuit…"Aoba whispered under his breath.

"Begin synchronisation procedures," the bottle blonde instructed, hoping to put a stop to any further nonsense.

* * *

Ten minutes later, an exhausted Misato emerged from the entry plug. She scanned the immediate area for Shinji.

'To see if he was there with a drink for her, like he had been earlier,' the Captain told herself firmly. 'It's nothing to do with the fact that I might want him to wash my back…'

The sexy woman froze. "Yeah, definitely need to talk with Ritsuko about that…"

Shinji approached her with the lab coat and a bottle of water. "Dr. Akagi said that I should give this to you."

"Water?" Misato pouted playfully. She took the bottle and took a long drink, sating her thirst. "Thanks, Shinji. So, what now?"

"Normally, it's I shower after the sync tests," Shinji answered.

The Captain finished drinking her bottle of water. "Not quite what I had in mind, Shinji. I mean, yeah, I managed to sync with Unit-00, but what does Ritsuko want to do next?"

Doctor Akagi quickly walked up to the two pilots.

"Well, Ritsuko, what now?"

"The MAGI will be analysing the data from today for some time, but the first impression is that we have two pilots and two Evangelions we can use. As to what level, well, we'll have see," Ritsuko explained. "In the mean time, I think we should get something to eat soon."

"Ok, what would you like to eat, Dr. Akagi?" Shinji asked, mentally preparing options for dinner based upon what was in Misato's cupboards.

"Anything that isn't Misato's curry noodles."

"Hey, how come you get to eat Shinji's cooking?" Misato demanded. "Bit cheeky to just invite yourself round to someone's house, isn't it?"

The bottle blonde had the grace to look a little contrite at her friend's comment. "There are other factors at work, Misato. Remember that thing we talked about earlier?"

"Oh… that," the Captain laughed nervously. "Ok, you can come round."

* * *

To be continued.

Or something.

Pre-read by Chi Vayne and previewed on various intertubes.

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